Ukraine’s European backers ‘in panic’ after Alaska summit – Putin envoy

The leaders of France, Germany, and Britain plan to back Zelensky in talks with Trump, according to reports

Ukraine’s backers in the EU and UK are “in a panic” after the Alaska summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart, Donald Trump, according to Russian economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev.

Putin and Trump met in Anchorage on Friday in their first face-to-face encounter since 2018, with ways to resolve the Ukraine conflict topping the agenda. The Russian president described the talks as “frank” and “substantive,” while Trump said they were “warm.”

Dmitriev, who is CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and was among his country’s delegation in Alaska, wrote on Telegram on Sunday that “European and British supporters of the conflict are in panic” because of the diplomatic efforts by Moscow and Washington.

He added links to a report by Politico, which stated that Western European leaders are “anxious” ahead of Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky’s planned meeting with Trump in Washington on Monday.

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According to the outlet’s sources, they plan to send Finnish President Alexander Stubb to Washington in hopes that he “can help prevent any flare-ups between Trump and Zelensky and convince the US president to include Europe in any further talks.”

Dmitriev also referenced an article by Bild claiming that German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer are considering traveling to Washington to support Zelensky.

Zelensky’s previous trip to the White House in February culminated in a shouting match in front of the cameras with Trump and US Vice President J.D. Vance, who accused the Ukrainian leader of being ungrateful for American aid and being uninterested in peace.

Trump told Fox News on Friday that Zelensky should “make the deal” to resolve the conflict with Russia, stressing that Putin “wants to see it done” and urging Western Europe to “get involved a little bit.”

According to Axios, Trump told Kiev’s European backers that he wants to arrange a trilateral summit with Putin and Zelensky “as soon as next Friday.”

READ MORE: Trump wants summit with Putin and Zelensky next Friday – media

Putin reiterated on Saturday that any settlement of the Ukraine conflict should eliminate its root causes. Moscow insists that for lasting peace to be achieved, Ukraine should renounce its NATO ambitions, demilitarize, and recognize the current territorial realities.